Smoke Lounge

08/01/2016

What exactly is a toothy wrapper?

One that's bumpy—and intentionally so.

Certain types of wrapper to***co naturally develop pockets of oil that look like little bumps on their leaves. These pockets, called "tooth," are most frequently found on Cameroon-seed wrapper grown in Cameroon and the Central African Republic.

Some Indonesian wrappers also have tooth. When a cigar reviewer examines a cigar and sees a noticeable amount of the bumps, he or she would describe it as toothy. The tooth is a key source of flavor, and is a desireable feature.

When a toothy wrapper burns, the bumps of tooth become the little white dots embedded in a cigar's ash. While Cameroon is the world's toothiest wrapper, other to***cos may yield the white dots, even when there is no visible tooth on the surface of the wrapper.

24/10/2015

Same Box, So Why the Uneven Burn?
Assuming that you bought the ci**rs at a reputable store, there could be a couple of explanations.

It may be that they were over- or under-humidified at some stage before you got them and they haven't returned to equilibrium. Or it may be that the to***co was still quite young when you bought them.

In either case, let the ci**rs age for six months or more in your humidor, then try again. If you are not getting any "gummy" sensation on your lips, which is a sign of improperly fermented wrapper to***co, time should help ease the problem.

If the gumminess persists, time won't help; the to***co is just too raw.

11/09/2015

Weekly Tip From Aficionado
I recently received a box of Montecristo No. 4s as a gift and the draw on every one I have smoked so far has been incredibly tight. Is there any way of curing a tight draw?

It's not easy. But it can be done.

Plugged ci**rs sometimes have a knot in the bunch that keeps enough smoke from reaching your mouth. A determined cigar smoker can attempt to massage the knot in order to try to loosen the bunch.

This is a delicate process. It takes some pressure to work through a knot, but applying too much force can easily split a cigar's wrapper. From our experience no matter how hard you try, you run a pretty good chance of splitting the wrapper.

Unfortunately, most draw problems stem from when a buncher has twisted the filler to***co while making the bunch. If this is the case, massaging isn't going to help.

Some products have come to market allowing a smoker to punch holes through a cigar. We've had mixed results with these tools. In the long run, remember that ci**rs are handmade products and subject to the shortcomings of human beings. If you have a plugged cigar, perhaps you should simply chalk it up to experience and pick up a fresh smoke.

09/07/2015

Weekly Tip From Cigar Aficionado !!
Final Word on Finish
You often refer to a cigar's 'finish' in your tasting notes. Can you define this term for me?
Finish is a tasting term.

A common word used by wine tasters, it refers to the taste that lingers on the palate after you've swallowed, or spit, a sip of wine.

In wine, one of the factors in determining complexity is the length and depth of the finish. The same is true for ci**rs. Take a puff, swirl the smoke around in your mouth, and blow it out.

Concentrate on the taste in your mouth after the smoke is gone. Sure, some mild ci**rs aren't going to have much finish, either in terms of length or complexity. But stronger, more full-bodied ci**rs will have distinctive flavors that linger for quite a while.

21/05/2015

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20/05/2015

Newbie Corner
A Gentle Touch: Hand-Rolling Ci**rs
For cigar lovers, the artistic genius lies in the touch of hands

An artist’s genius flows from an intricate web of creative sources, yet one always dominates. It may be a photographer’s eye, a painter’s vision, a writer’s mind, a musician’s ear or a dancer’s lithe muscles. The genesis of creation, however, is often invisible, the connoisseur experiencing only the culmination of the artist’s long years of dedication and effort. A cigar, like many masterpieces, apparently epitomizes simplicity—a bunch of to***co leaves rolled together to be lit and smoked. A cigar’s seemingly simple origin reduces the act of smoking to an almost thoughtless pastime, the smoker maintaining an innocence about the complex combination of artistry and skill that produces it. Yet a cigar is much more than a skilled laborer’s mundane assembly of the parts; it is the gift of craftsmen who rely on their hands to forge a solid elixir of simple pleasure. For cigar lovers, the artistic genius lies in the touch of hands.

The magic of cigar making actually begins in the fields and the curing barns. The mystery involves the choice of soil, the type of seed and the timing of the harvest to bring the leaves to the barns in optimum condition, if nature has cooperated. Weather aside, man plays a role in each of those choices. His expert touch is essential in the fields, especially at harvest time when wrapper leaves are treated like pieces of fine crystal, the tiniest blemish affecting the value of the leaf. The length of drying, the stacking of leaves into bales for fermentation, the duration and intensity of the fermentation are all critical elements, choices made by master to***co men who are artists in their own right. Even in the barns, it’s not uncommon to see to***co men ignore the thermometers and thrust their arms into the steaming stacks of leaves.

Once cured and fermented, the to***co must be aged. The bales, either wrapped in burlap or stored in huge boxes, sit in vast, temperature-controlled warehouses for up to two years, and sometimes longer. Once primed and ready, the transformation of the to***co from a pile of leaves to a cigar depends almost totally on the touch and feel of human hands. The leaves are broken out of the bales and “cased,” a technique that moistens the leaves so they become supple and ready for manipulation. Some factories use a technique in which the leaves are bathed in a fine mist of water; others use huge rooms with extremely high humidity. The leaves are usually prepared a day in advance.

After they are cased, the leaves are deveined, either with the aid of machines or simply by workers delicately pulling the stem down the middle of the leaf. The leaves are separated by strength or to***co type. A supervisor, or blender, will prepare the exact proportion of leaves to be used in a cigar, usually arranging the leaves into different boxes that are then placed on the rollers’ desks. The rollers receive instructions on how much of each leaf to press into the ci**rs they are making that day. Depending upon the factory, some ci**rs are made from beginning to end by the same person; a good roller in this setup can make 100 to 150 ci**rs a day. In other factories, two bunchers (workers who create the filler/ binder unit) are teamed with a roller, who places the outer wrapper on the cigar; in that setup, a team may make 250 to 300 ci**rs a day, or even more in smaller sizes.

The bunch is created by the cigarmaker taking the three or four different leaves in the blend and pressing them together in his or her hands, folding the leaves over on themselves to form cylinders, leaving a narrow passage through the center of the cigar that will ensure that the cigar draws properly; in some factories, the maker places the filler leaves in a roller’s aid called a Temsco machine, a cigarette-style rolling device. The binder is then applied, either in the machine or by hand-rolling it around the filler leaves. The entire package is placed in a wooden mold, a form with slots that approximate the size and diameter of the cigar being made. After a mold is filled, the top half of the form is placed over it and the mold is taken to a manual hydraulic press. The bunches are usually pressed for 30 to 45 minutes, with the mold given a quarter turn at intervals to prevent to***co ridges from forming where the mold halves meet. At this point, some factories also put the ci**rs on a special machine to suck air through the cigar and check the draw.

The mold then goes to the roller, and the outer wrapper leaf is rolled around the bunch. At each step, the cigarmakers are checking the bunch with their hands for hard or loose spots and uniformity of the leaves. Any defects bring swift rejection. When the cigar is almost complete, a cap is applied to the head, or smoking end, of the cigar. The cap is usually a piece of to***co sliced off the leaf before the cigar is rolled. In another technique, the roller fashions a cap from the protruding end of the wrapper leaf, called the flap or flag. Once the cigar is finished, the maker places it on top of his rolling desk and a supervisor inspects the cigar by hand, rejecting any cigar that he suspects of being improperly rolled or filled. In some factories, bunches of 50 ci**rs are weighed together; if the weight varies by a predetermined amount, usually a couple of grams, all 50 ci**rs are returned to the roller to be redone.

After they’re rolled, the ci**rs are placed in an aging room where they remain for a minimum of 21 days. This permits the to***cos to “marry,” or blend, and acquire balance. Some companies age their ci**rs for up to six months or more before shipping.

Once the aging is finished, the ci**rs are spread onto tables. They are sorted by hand into groups of 25 that will go into the same box. The process requires a keen eye for color, as there may be as many as 20 slight color variations. A sorter may also reject ci**rs if they have any visible flaws, such as cracks or blemishes. The ci**rs are then nestled into boxes made of cardboard or Spanish cedar (depending on the packaging style, some ci**rs are wrapped in cellophane), sealed and shipped.

The next hand to caress the cigar’s wrapper should be the smoker’s, the final gentle touch in a cigar’s life.

10/04/2015

Cuban Ci**rs History- Ci**rs Smoking

The to***co plant originally came from South America. Even though it is impossible to state exactly when it was brought to the largest island in the Antilles, it can be said that that happened between 3000 and 2000 B.C.

The aborigines considered to***co a miraculous medicine and an essential element in their religious, political and social ceremonies. It was a part of their agriculture and an inseparable adjunct of life. Europeans were introduced to this planta source of great physical and spiritual pleasure when they first reached the Americas. It didn't take long for the Old Continent to develop a veritable passion for it. As was only to be expected, Spain had the most smokers who were also the first to be subjected to terrible punishments for smoking. The habit later spread to Persia, Japan, Turkey and Russia, where the cruelest punishments were established. Curiously, as bans on smoking gained ground, to***co was increasingly used for medicinal purposes. On April 11, 1717, King Philip V established a royal monopoly on to***co-growing in Cuba a decision which has gone down in history as the Estanco del Tabaco. To***co-growers who opposed the onerous law lost their lives.

The monopoly remained in effect until June 23, 1817, when a royal decree did away with the monopoly, permitting free trade between Cuba and the rest of the known world as long as it was through Spanish ports. No slaves were used in to***co-growing. Sugarcane wasn't such a delicate crop, and slaves could be used in its cultivation and harvesting, but, as Jose Marti said, to***co plants had to be handled as carefully as if they were fine ladies. Immigrants from the Canary Islands worked in the to***co fields, laying the foundations for a very special breed: Cuban farmers. The 19th century provided the final reaffirmation of Cuba's to***co production. Suffice it to say that, in 1859, there were nearly 10,000 to***co plantations and around 1300 cigar factories in the capital. Cuba entered the 20th century in very precarious conditions, for its devastating wars of independence had just ended.

To***co & Cuban Ci**rs

A cigar is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented to***co one end of which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the smoker’s mouth through the other end.

The word cigar is from the Spanish word cigarro, which the Oxford British Dictionary suggests is a variation on cigarra, Spanish for “cicada” due to its shape, especially that of what is now called the perfecto. Other sources have indicated that it may be derived from the Mayan word sikar, “to***co.”

Cigar to***co is grown in significant quantities in such nations as Brazil, Cameron. Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua and the United States of America. Ci**rs manufactured in Cuba are widely considered to be without peer, although many experts believe that the best offerings from Honduras and Nicaragua rival those from Cuba. The Cuban reputation arises from both the unique characteristics of the Vuelta Abajo region in the Pinar del Rio Province at the west of the island, where a microclimate allows for high-quality to***co to be grown, and the skill of the Cuban cigar makers.

02/04/2015

Cuba Unveils Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchill Gran Reserva

Cuba is continuing its trend of releasing ultra-pricey, limited-edition ci**rs at the Habanos Festival, the annual gathering of cigar distributors, retailers and lovers of fine Cuban ci**rs.

The Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchill Gran Reserva Cosecha 2009, a plump cigar adorned with three bands, was previewed to those who attended the opening night party in Havana on Monday, February 23. Like other Gran Reserva ci**rs, the to***cos used in the Wide Churchill come from a vintage crop, in this case the 2009 harvest.

The Gran Reserva Wide Churchill measures 5 1/8 inches long by 55 ring gauge and comes in boxes of 15. Only 5,000 boxes, each individually numbered and painted with a piano-black finish, have been created.

The cigar is unlikely to go on sale until the end of the year, and it wouldn't be uncommon for its release to be pushed back to 2016. (The Partagás Lusitania Gran Reserva, which was previewed at the 2013 Festival,
A sample of the cigar, which was made with an unblemished, tawny brown wrapper, was smoked during the Festival. The draw was spot on, requiring just the right amount of effort. The burn was slightly uneven; the ash was blackish grey, typical for Cuban ci**rs. The flavor was impressive, with a honeyed peanut note and a sweet, unctuous quality reminiscent of a Sauternes dessert wine.

27/03/2015

Top 10 Most Asked Questions About Ci**rs

In no particular order, here are answers to 10 of the most commonly asked questions about cigar smoking

At Cigar Aficionado, one of our missions is to educate readers about the finer points of cigar smoking and to provide the most complete and accurate information possible to help smokers further their enjoyment of ci**rs. We try our best to answer readers’ questions.

In no particular order, here are answers to 10 of the most commonly asked questions about cigar smoking. If you’re new to ci**rs, you will find this section invaluable, and if you’ve been smoking for years, you may learn some things you had not previously considered.

Q. My ci**rs are overhumidified. What can I do to restore the humidor to optimal conditions? Can the ci**rs be saved?

A. In most cases, the ci**rs can be saved. Overhumidification is a problem, especially prevalent during summer or in warmer, more sultry climates. But there are ways to combat it, and to ensure that your humidor stays in top shape year-round.

Adding cedar strips to the humidor—you’ll find these in many cigar boxes—will help maintain optimum moisture levels. Put a strip or two on the bottom of the humidor, a strip in the middle, and another on top, and you’ll watch the humidity reading drop as the cedar absorbs the humidor’s extra moisture. Just keep an eye on the ci**rs, and add or remove cedar until you’ve reached the desired humidification.

The one thing you should not do is simply leave the lid of the humidor open—this can lead to wild fluctuations in humidity, and turn ci**rs that are too moist into dried-out ci**rs in a short time. Another thing to consider is the number of ci**rs in your humidor; if you have a very large box containing few ci**rs, the smokes may absorb more than their proper share of humidity.

Q. Although I generally use guillotine cutters, I was recently given a stylish wedge cutter. What’s the difference, and will I damage my cigar?

A. Wedge cutters were conceived decades ago, when the average cigar was much thinner than it is today. They were designed to open up a larger opening to channel the smoke, which is a consideration for lonsdales and coronas but generally not an issue for thicker ci**rs such as robustos. As a general rule, we prefer guillotines, as ci**rs cut with wedge cutters can accumulate tars that do not build up when using a straight cut. Also, wedge cutters tend to be imprecise in comparison with straight cutters, and you run the risk of damaging the cigar.

The third type of cutter that has become popular is the bullet, or lance, cutter. This type of cutter makes a circular hole in the head of the cigar, and it, too, has its drawbacks. First, it is easy to pierce the cigar too deeply, creating a tunnel near the head that makes the cigar burn hot. Also, as with a wedge cutter, the bullet hole left in the cigar’s head allows tars to build up near the mouth of the smoker, frequently altering or souring the cigar’s taste.

Q. I’ve noticed a powdery substance on several of my ci**rs. What is this, and need I be concerned?

A. If the substance has a whitish color and can be easily dusted off the ci**rs without leaving residue, fear not. What you have in this case is “plume” (also called bloom), a natural occurrence caused by the ci**rs’ sweating off some of the oils that are inherent to to***co. Just dust off the ci**rs prior to smoking them.

If, however, the residue is more of a bluish color and leaves a stain on the wrapper when you dust it off, the ci**rs are the victims of mold. Mold is frequently caused by high temperature and humidity levels, so keeping your humidor near the optimal 70 degree/70 percent humidity mark will help avoid this problem. Also, mold can be caused by not using distilled water in your humidification device, so know what sort of water you are using.

Q. Occasionally some of my ci**rs will develop holes, and I’ve seen some small bugs crawling around my humidor. What should I do?

A. Beetles cause one of the most devastating problems found in humidors because they can quickly decimate a cigar supply and are difficult to combat. Beetle larvae are microscopic and occur naturally in to***co, and, despite the quality control efforts of manufacturers, are frequently in ci**rs that make it to market. Once the temperature reaches 72 degrees, the beetles can hatch; they crawl through the ci**rs, creating those small round holes that essentially destroy a once-good smoke. But they can be combated by keeping a vigilant watch on your humidor’s temperature, and perhaps by installing a beetle trap in your humidor. In addition, beetle larvae can be killed by freezing the ci**rs. Just put them in your freezer for three days, then move them into the fridge for one day. After you’ve frozen the ci**rs, though, take care to slowly acclimate them to rehumidification, lest the wrappers on the ci**rs crack

Other bugs you may occasionally run into are wood mites—small, white insects that are often the result of opening a fresh wooden box of ci**rs. The good news is that these mites won’t harm the ci**rs, and they don’t live long enough to seriously damage your humidor.

Q. My to***conist sells many box-pressed ci**rs. Why do manufacturers do this? Is there an advantage to box-pressed smokes over round ci**rs?

A. Box pressing is a stylistic decision, and it neither makes a cigar better nor worse than a round cigar. Lots of people favor the feel of a box-pressed smoke, and some manufacturers feel box pressing can correct potential construction flaws. But it is an aesthetic decision as to whether you prefer this style of cigar. Box pressing says nothing about the quality of the cigar, nor of the person who smokes it.

Q. What is the best way for me to age my ci**rs?

A. Many collectors choose to age their ci**rs in boxes, keeping like ci**rs together. Also, it’s a good idea to age ci**rs at a slightly lower temperature and humidity level than normal, and then to move the aged smokes to a desktop humidor when you’re ready to begin smoking them.

Many cigar brands, especially Cuban brands, are available in cabinet presentation, where the ci**rs are banded together with a ribbon in a format that makes them ideal for aging and long-term storage. While aging boxed ci**rs is certainly acceptable, these cabinet-packed smokes make even more attractive aging candidates, and therefore frequently command higher prices at auction.

Q. Many ci**rs are sold in individual cellophane overwraps. Should I remove the cellophane prior to placing the ci**rs in my humidor? What about tubes and bands? Are ci**rs best stored “naked”?

A. Cellophane serves several purposes on a cigar—in states that require each cigar to have a warning label, it makes this notification much easier to accomplish, and it prevents damage to the ci**rs from excessive handling in cigar shops. But once you’ve bought the cigar and are placing it in your humidor, we recommend you remove the cellophane. Cellophane will prevent humidity from reaching the cigar, and you’ll find the ci**rs will respond to humidification better if the overwrap has been removed. The same holds true for cigar tubes, whether glass or aluminum; these tubes will completely close off a cigar to humidification if left on. However, if you intend to transport your ci**rs \(such as in a coat pocket\), it may be a good idea to keep a few tubes or cellophane overwraps handy to protect the ci**rs during transport.

As far as bands are concerned, it’s a matter of personal preference. Some people like to remove them, but when possible, we generally choose to keep the bands on \(outside of our tasting procedures, of course\). First, it makes identifying the ci**rs much easier, and it also prevents inadvertent damage to the cigar’s wrapper that can occur while removing the band.

Q. Can I use my Zippo lighter to light a cigar?

A. It’s probably not your best option. We suggest using wooden matches or, better yet, strips of cedar called spills. These will light your cigar without imparting to it the taste or odor of the oil found in lighter fluid. If you wish to use a lighter for your ci**rs, we recommend one that uses butane as its fuel, as these types of lighters are odorless. However, some smokers insist on using their old Zippo lighters, which may have sentimental value. If you’re one of these people, just make sure that when lighting your cigar, the flame of the Zippo does not touch the cigar’s foot. Once the cigar is lit, you may also choose to give the cigar one (and only one) outward puff, to clear it of any impurities caused by the lighter fluid.

Q. My grandfather always dips his ci**rs in Cognac or rum. Is this a good idea? Why does my to***conist warn me against it?

A. Your grandfather probably started doing this decades ago, when ci**rs were shipped drier and humidification technology was not what it is today. Dipping the ci**rs in those years helped impart moisture to a dry cigar. Today, however, ci**rs are generally shipped and stored in optimally humidified conditions, and dipping a cigar in Cognac or rum will only serve to make your cigar soggy. What’s more, the smoke will not taste like what it was dipped in, another reason we strongly recommend leaving the Cognac or rum in a glass, and enjoying it alongside your ci**rs.

Q. I’ve been told you should only smoke a cigar halfway. Is this true? How can I tell when a cigar is done?

A. The golden rule here is that a cigar is done whenever you’re no longer enjoying it. But as a general maxim, we smoke our ci**rs about half to two-thirds of the way down. The reason is that a cigar gets hotter and more powerful the further down you smoke it, and its flavor changes as tars and moisture build up near the cigar’s head. Smoke it too far, and you risk ruining the great flavor you’ve been enjoying. But this is simply a suggestion—if you’re still enjoying the cigar as its lit end is about to burn your fingertips, go right on smoking it. Cigar smoking, after all, is about enjoyment

10/03/2015

Cuba's Cohiba ci**rs are getting a new holographic band that deters counterfeiting and the new bands are starting to show up on cigar shelves.